< PreviousLove your home:[VYLZPU.YHU[OHT)VZ[VU:J\U[OVYWL^^^VSKYPKZJV\R Love your gardenLove yourselfLove your family30-35.qxp_Layout 1 19/02/2019 08:29 Page 1LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 31BOSTONBoston’s subtle appeal Boston may not be what springs to mind when you think of a destination to visit, but for those who have seen its many sights, it still holds a powerful appeal. Boston is a town steeped in history, which in many ways has retained much of its heritage. Once upon a time the town was a major export hub, second only to London itself in the amount of trade it handled each year. This is what led to a major city in the US being named after the town, which many believed would remain an industrial trade hub for much of the UK. As the wool trade that Boston so heavily relied on began to die down however, the town found itself left behind by some of its larger cousins, but that only means it has retained much of its rustic © Shutterstock / Randall Runtsch33 Á30-35.qxp_Layout 1 19/02/2019 08:29 Page 232 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAYPREMIUM MULTI-FUEL STOVES & FIRES ELECTIC & GAS FIRES AND SURROUNDSWe have an extensive range of fireplaces, multi-fuel and wood burning stoves along with a magnificent collection of gas fires, electric fires and surrounds on display at our showroom in Boston, Lincolnshire. Our stunning selections from leading British and Scandinavian manufacturers such as Elgin & Hall, Jotul, Chesneys, Dimplex, Valor Contura and Arada to name but a few, means we cater for all tastes. Our friendly and helpful staff are always on hand to give you some ideas and help to guide you with your purchase. Visit our showroom or call us today on 01205 310 327. Church Road, Boston PE21 0LG | Tel: 01205 310 327 E-mail: sales@bostonheating.co.uk | www.bostonheating.co.ukDeliciously Deliciously LincolnshirePlatinum Awarded for outstanding quality and service byLincolnshireTodayawardWWW.LINCOLNSHIRETODAY.NETAward-winning family pubSwineshead Road, Boston, PE21 7JE Tel: 01205 361323 Email: wayne.salmon@btconnect.com www.hammerandpincers-boston.co.ukHammer & Pincers is a family pub based in Swineshead Road, Boston. We serve an exclusive range of food and drink in a welcoming atmosphere. Sit back and relax with a pint of one of our fine cask ales or sample our range of premium lagers, wines and gins. We also have poker nights, team pool and darts nights in addition to showing all live Premier League football. Give us a call for further details.Hammer & Pincers is your first choice for freshly home-cooked food coupled with an extensive range of premium drinksKeeping businesson the up...We pride ourselves on providing a pro-active, friendly and accessible service.Experts in Accounts and Tax Returns Tax Planning and Book-Keeping Audits and Business AdviceWe’re here to get you in the right directionTo find out how get your business on the up visitwww.dextersharpe.co.ukOffices in Boston, Bourne, Horncastle, Lincoln, Louth, Skegness & SpilsbyCHARTERED CERTIFIEDACCOUNTANTSAward WinningRestaurant LUNCH DINNER SUNDAY CARVERYREDLIONBICKER.CO.UKCALL: 01775 821200YE OLDE RED LION, BICKER BAR, BICKER, BOSTON, PE20 3AN30-35.qxp_Layout 1 19/02/2019 08:29 Page 3LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 33BOSTONcharm – instead of becoming a sprawling metropolis like many larger cities. Nowadays the town isn’t quite so powerful, but that doesn’t make it any less of a spot for shopping and tourism within Lincolnshire. Beyond that, Boston manages to maintain many of its links to the past and is quick to celebrate its cultural heritage. In fact, in 2019 and 2020, an ambitious year-long commemoration marking the 400th year of the Mayflower (the ship carrying the pilgrims to America) will take place, honouring this moment in the world’s history and the part that Boston played in it. Boston was one of the key towns that made up the Mayflower trail, and, as a result, had one of the first cities founded in the US named after it. Boston, Massachusetts. Closer to home, the huge tower of St Botolph’s Church (or the Boston Stump, as the locals are more likely to call it) dominates the town, and it continues to bring people together. It celebrated its seven hundredth anniversary not so long ago and the success demonstrated how iconic and cherished it remains. Equally iconic is the Maud Foster Mill – one of the few still working and producing flour. It’s estimated that around half of Boston’s population is employed in the agriculture industry – so if any town is well equipped to highlight the best of Lincolnshire produce, you’d suggest it was probably this one. This foodie heritage continues with its ever-popular markets. Fresh food started being sold in the town’s market place around a thousand years ago and the tradition continues – in exactly the same location – to this day. Boston plays host to several of the top growers and suppliers in Lincolnshire, and some of their most loyal and enthusiastic customers are the chefs and owners behind some of the town’s top eating places. They also frequent the array of independent traders that can found along the length of Boston’s High Street. These kinds of events have been held in Boston since the 12th century and were important to not only the economy, but also the survival of residents back then. Nowadays there’s always the supermarket if you need something, but these events are a great chance to pick up some fresh, local produce that you know hasn’t been tampered with in any way. It’s also an incredible sight to see, and many visitors to the area make sure to experience it. © Shutterstock / Henrykc35 Á30-35.qxp_Layout 1 19/02/2019 08:30 Page 434 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAYC & C AUTOS Volkswagen & Scooter Specialists T4 and T5 Transporter service and conversion Tel: 01205 367565 The Autobarn Broadfield Industrial Estate Broadfield Lane Boston PE21 8DR cncautos2019@gmail.com Due to redevelopment, after 33 years, Boston Electrical Services are moving from Norfolk Street, Boston, one and a half miles down the road, to Unit 2 Cowbridge Business Park, Cowbridge, Boston PE22 7DJ (known in the past as Ashcroft Fabrics). We are due to open on Monday 4th March and would welcome customers old and new. WE ARE MOVINGT: 01205 350737 E: beslek@gmx.com W: www.bostonelectrics.co.uk BOSTON Electrical ServicesVisit our showroom or look online for our star buysBigger showroom with more choice from Boston’s No1 Independent Electrical Retailer J&JFUELS BOSTONOil in South Lincolnshire is available at a fair price and with a reliable service from family run J and J Fuels. We are here to ensure you receive the very best service and at a time that suits you. As member of the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers you can be sure of a safe service every time with quality of product also assured. We pride ourselves on our prompt delivery services as well as our competitive prices. Offering domestic heating oil and farm diesel within a 30 mile radius of Boston.01205 760 638 Bakers Lane, Freiston, Boston www.jandjfuels.comFor Quality Flooring and Window Blinds Call Graham Gill Carpets Today Graham Gill Carpets Limited is one of the longest established carpet shops in the Boston area. As well as the domestic market, our clients include many local businesses, offices, schools, colleges, local authority agencies and builders. Tel/Fax: 01205 365350 24 West Street, Boston PE21 8QH www.grahamgillcarpets.comFree Estimates & evening calls Wide selection of blinds also availableWhether you are calling in for that special occasion meal, a satisfying snack or a social drink with friends, you will always receive the very warmest of welcomes. All our food is prepared in the restaurant kitchen using only locally sourced ingredients. As well as our À la Carte we also offer Early Bird, Lunch and Children's menus. We also offer a Chef's Specials menu on Friday and Saturday evenings. We provide the very best in business buffet lunches as well as catering for charity functions and special occasions. Chef's specials are also available all week. To accompany your meal we have a wide selection of fine wines, draught & bottled beers, cask ales, spirits and soft drinks. Great Fen Road, Wyberton Fen, Boston, Lincs PE21 7PB. Tel: 01205 362378 Email: merrimans1@btconnect.com www.merrimansrestaurant.co.ukMERRIMANS LOUNGE & RESTAURANTDeliciously Deliciously LincolnshireGold Awarded for outstanding quality and service byLincolnshireTodayawardWWW.LINCOLNSHIRETODAY.NETLooking for a great gift idea? eeYeNewT earJANUA£2.95 ARY2019 NeN oooeY uo 2019t d r happyreaders anew yearall ourppyewwishingrshapourreadingall fitnessNew ye2 n businesFamily OLNSHIRETODAY.NETTOLNSHIRETODAYNEToungearsy WWW.LINCWWWLINCe30+ y BLMwww.blmgroup.co.uk1st 3 issues only £1Lincolnshire Today’s gift subscription for only £27.55 with free delivery Call 01472 310301 or visit www.lincolnshiretoday.net/34130-35.qxp_Layout 1 19/02/2019 08:30 Page 5LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 35BOSTONThere’s more to Boston than heritage however, and the town is a prime location for shopping in the south of the county. From clothes to cars and everything in between, Boston has a much larger shopping scene than one might initially expect from a town of approximately 65,000. One of the biggest attractions, and one few other places can boast, has to be the Lincolnshire Wildlife Centre. It was voted ‘Visitor Attraction of the Year 2017’ by the East Lindsey District Council, and that came as surprise to few. With eleven Bengal Tigers in their enclosure, the Bengal Gardens, it’s one of the rare places you can come and see such majestic animals. Alongside them are parrots, reptiles, snakes, fish and other animals. Since their rising popularity due in no small part to car insurance adverts, there is also a meerkat enclosure, and a great opportunity to watch the funny animals dig and play. There’s more planned in the future, however. The Boston May Fair will take place from the 4th to the 11th of May this year and feature numerous attractions in the town centre, making it a key attraction of the year. On the historical side of things, Boston is also paying homage to its past with plans made for the restoration of Shodfriar’s Hall, a 14th century Boston building, to make it accessible to the public, with heritage tours tentatively planned for the future. It’s attractions like this, and Boston’s connection and respect for its past, which give Boston its deceptive appeal.© Shutterstock / Oscar Johns© Shutterstock / Oscar Johns30-35.qxp_Layout 1 19/02/2019 08:30 Page 6Lincolnshire heritage exploredRarely does one man achieve so much as Fowler who during his time in Lincolnshire worked on so many of our churches. His architectural practice was to design a wide range of buildings including several schools, banks, numerous rectories, almshouses, a convalescent home and even a working men’s club and he had many commissions in other parts of the country too. But it’s for his work on our Lincolnshire churches that he is principally known and through this he changed the face of the county’s ecclesiastical landscape in both town and village. We shall here mainly concentrate on this aspect of his work. Strangely though, Fowler was not a Lincolnshire man. He was born on 11th December 1828 in Lichfield, Staffordshire. After school he trained as a lithographer and only came to Lincolnshire when he was twenty in 1849, initially to work at Louth’s House of Correction, now demolished, although the Orme Almshouses – a later Fowler design of 1885 – now stand on the site. He joined the Louth architectural practice of Joseph Maughan in 1851 and there he worked on his first Lincolnshire church at St Helen’s, Stickford, and also designed his first entirely new church at East Ravendale. He set up his own practice in 1859 having by then joined the Architectural Society for the Lincoln Diocese of which he subsequently became a committee member in 1888. He married in 1861 and had three children. James Fowler was elected onto Louth town council in 1872 and in the record time of only twenty-nine months (a record which I believe still stands) was elected mayor in 1874 being re-elected in 1875 unopposed; he was again mayor a further three times in 1880, 1886 and 1890. He was also very active in the social life of the town being a JP from 1880 and president of the Naturalist and Antiquarian Society in 1884 as well as being involved in many other organisations. The house where he lived in Westgate from 1869 still stands. Looking at the number of churches he James Fowler changed the face of Lincolnshire churches over a career of four decades; we examine his life and work.36-37.qxp_Layout 1 18/02/2019 10:56 Page 1church had already been rebuilt in brick in the 1770’s. St Martin, East Ravendale (where Fowler also designed the nearby school) and Dalby are fortunate to have some of Fowler’s surviving architectural drawings too. Not all of his commissions were for country churches however. Designs for larger town churches can be seen throughout the county. One new church was St Peter’s, Cleethorpes (1864) and in Lincoln his design for St Swithin’s (1868) was a competition winner. Binbrook too received a new church in 1869 when the towns two parishes were combined; explaining St Mary and St Gabriel’s double dedication. In Skegness Fowler’s design for St Matthews of 1869 was finally completed until 1884. He also undertook two major restorations at St James’s, Louth in 1860 and again in 1868/9. Sadly, some of his churches - but thankfully very few - have been demolished; forlorn, empty churchyards survive at Muckton and Winceby for example. Three representative examples of his other secular work are Browne’s Hospital, Stamford (1870), almshouses in Fotherby LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 37worked on the scale of his output was prodigious. Examples of Fowler churches extend from Market Deeping in the south to West Halton by the Humber; and from Saltfleetby on the coast to Newton-on-Trent. He is known to have been involved with well over one hundred churches in Lincolnshire, of these many were restored or rebuilt, but there were also at least eighteen new ones. There’s no room to list them all here of course! His preferred style was that of C14th Gothic, that is Early English (though somewhat Victorianised), along with a definite liking for brickwork which was often polychromatic; especially for his interiors. These often come as a surprise as they are hidden from the outsides of what may appear to be a fairly “traditional” exteriors. He used brightly coloured tiles frequently too. Good examples are at St Lawrence, Dalby, St Mary’s at Fotherby, at South Reston and particularly St Michael and All Angels, Frampton West. He was fond too of turrets and spirelets, which often incorporated a bellcote (e.g. St James, Rigsby and – again - Dalby). Another nice touch at Fotherby is the restoration date of 1863 embossed on the drain heads. However, one brick exterior, that of St Phillip at Brinkhill, (from 1857 whilst he was still in partnership with Maugham) shows early Fowler use of this material. Another is at St Vedast’s at Tathwell where in 1889 he designed a south porch in brick and wood in a style very untypical of Lincolnshire which Pevsner describes as belonging in Sussex rather than the Lincolnshire Wolds; in fairness though the (1869) and the King Edward VI school, Louth (1868/9) also with nearby almshouses. James Fowler died on 10th October 1892 and was buried in Louth cemetery. Part of his legacy, in addition to his buildings, is that he is universally known and referred to simply as “Fowler of Louth”. His son Richard continued the practice after his father’s death. An example of his work, obviously much influenced by James, is St Andrew (1889) at Beelsby. There are several memorials to James Fowler in Louth. One is the blue plaque on the wall of his house in Westgate. There are also two memorials in nearby St James church; a wooden “portrait” carved in the choirstalls and a plaque on the wall of the south aisle. In St Michael’s the chancel screen was designed by Richard in his father’s memory. The definitive book on Fowler’s life and work, to which I am indebted, was published by the Louth Naturalists and Antiquarian Society. (Messrs Robinson, Scorer and Kaye) (1992). by Hugh Marrows36-37.qxp_Layout 1 18/02/2019 10:56 Page 238 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAYFASHIONDressing for the season There’s a lot to look forward to in March but none more so than the start of spring. With the new season finally upon us, it’s time to take a dive into the trends and outfits you can expect to be seeing and wearing over the coming months. 38-47.qxp_Layout 1 18/02/2019 11:00 Page 1LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 39FASHIONMasai Bright, light and floral, these dresses from Masai are the perfect way to liven up your wardrobe for the spring. 38-47.qxp_Layout 1 18/02/2019 11:00 Page 2Next >